Scientology is a cult…
Adding my voice to the masses: Scientolgoy is not a religion - it’s a cult. It was created by - wait for it - science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard. If that’s not enough, a quick read of the Wikipedia article should convince all but the most die hard Tom Cruise fans.
Their heavy handed approach to protesters and critics is infamous, with the most recent event being a teenager charged under the UK Public Order Act which prohibits signs which have representations or words which are threatening, abusive or insulting. His sign? ‘Scientology is not a religion, it is a dangerous cult.’ Fortunately, today the Crown Prosecutors ruled there was no case, and the sign was “not abusive or insulting and there is no offensiveness (as opposed to criticism), neither in the idea expressed nor in the mode of expression.” Thank goodness for that…with the slightly dubious relationship between London police and Scientology, I think this would have been an exceedingly bad piece of PR.
Bottom line? If you know anyone who’s even tempted by Scientology - please try and talk some sense into them, or failing that, give them a few slaps across the head (I’m there’s an exemption in the criminal code, justifiable assault, etc). Perhaps just get them to watch the Chaser segment…the best bits start at one minute in!
I know this comment is not current but I would like to just say that if anyone ever read the bookd that Scientolgists base their “religion” on, I would fail to see how they would then be tempted to live by that life style. I myself purchased this book “Dianetics” by Ronn Hubbard by accident. I hadn’t really known what the book was linked to (was less hyped by the media at the time) and grabbed it for a few pounds in England. If you actually sit down and try to read it, one is immediately struck by the use of words that do not apear to be used in the correct sense of the term, and mostly, its long windedness. I read the passage on “silent birth” out of interest, to find out if some interview I heard on television was really true. Scary. Since I have heard about how a child in the womb can actually respond to sounds, and in actual fact must be surrounded by sounds all the time (the mothers body is not a stationary thing so must make some noise) it saddens me that a “religion” can dictate a women’s birthing procedure, based on nothing more than a religion’s point of view and not on facts.
What saddens me is the name of the scientology. The name itself gives a “spin”, that makes it seem that it must be based on science and the practise of scientific work.
I still have the book, but am loath to give it away to my local charity shop as I don’t want to spread the madness that seems to have afflicted many a famous actor or actress.